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Marital Status
Marital
status is classified through self-reporting into the categories married
and unmarried. The term married encompasses all married people including
those separated from their spouses. Unmarried includes those who are
single (never married), divorced, or widowed. The abortion surveillance
program classified separated people as unmarried before 1978.
In
the National Health Interview Survey
(NHIS), respondents are asked to choose a marital status category that
describes their marital situation.
Currently
married: People not separated from their spouses for reasons
of marital discord. Persons living apart for purposes of their
employment are considered married. Persons living together as
husband and wife are considered married, regardless of legal status.
Separated
and divorced: Persons who are legally separated or divorced or
who are living apart for reasons of marital discord.
Widowed:
Persons who have lost their spouse because of death.
Never
married: Persons who were never married and persons who only
marriage was annulled.
Starting in 1997, a new category, "living with partner," (also
termed "cohabiting") was added as a marital status category, and
people who were living with a partner were considered members of the same
family, whereas in the pre-1997 NHIS, they were considered separate
families.
Living
with partner: Persons who are not married but are living
together regardless of gender.
Birth
File--In
1970, 39 States and the District of Columbia (DC) and in 1975, 38 States
and DC included a direct question about mother's marital status on the
birth certificate. Since 1980 national estimates of births to unmarried
women have been based on two methods for determining marital status, a
direct question in the birth registration process and inferential
procedures. In 1980-96 marital status was reported on the birth
certificates of 41-45 States and DC; with the addition of California in
1997, 46 States and DC; and in 1998-2001, 48 States and DC. In 1997, all
but four States (Connecticut, Michigan, Nevada, and New York) and, in
1998, all but two States (Michigan and New York) included a direct
question about mother's marital status on their birth certificates. In
1998-2001 marital status was imputed as "married" on those
0.03-0.05 percent of birth records with missing information in the 48
States and DC where this information was obtained by a direct question.
For
States lacking a direct question, marital status was inferred. Before 1980
the incidence of births to unmarried women in States with no direct
question on marital status was assumed to be the same as the incidence in
reporting States in the same geographic division. Starting in 1980 for
States without a direct question, marital status was inferred by comparing
the parents' and child's surnames. Inferential procedures in current use
depend on the presence of a paternity acknowledgment or missing
information on the father. Changes in reporting procedures by some States
in 1995 and 1997 had little effect on national totals, but did affect
trends for age groups and some State trends.SOURCES: Health, United States and the National Health Interview Survey
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This page last reviewed
September 09, 2008
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